"We are making the symbol of Palestine. This scarf is the history and the heritage of our country." – Yasser Hirbawi.

The Hirbawi factory, located in Hebron (Al-Khalil) is the only kufiyeh factory in Palestine. Even while the kufiyeh enjoys a surge of popularity around the globe, the family-run company that produces this symbol of the Palestinian national struggle has been slowly grinding to a halt. "It's the Chinese imports," explains Yasser Hirbawi, the 76 year-old factory owner. "In the 70’s we could barely keep up with demand, but by the mid-90’s cheap Chinese scarves started coming in, because of globalisation and Gatt. We were forced to lower our prices and today we are working to a fraction of our capacity because we cannot compete." The factory used to produce more than 1,000 scarves a day, but now makes less than 100 - and struggles to sell those.

The Kufiyeh Project aims to ensure that Palestine’s only kufiyeh factory stays in business (and hopefully help it grow), by regularly buying from them in bulk and distributing worldwide. .